Wheeled carrier and strap

ABSTRACT

A wheeled carrier equipped with a handle assembly and wheels has both top and side doors covering openings for accessing the same compartment in the body of the carrier. A strap having an opening defined in the strap for receiving a handle assembly is provided to attach a carrier to a wheeled carrier in order for the carrier to be supported by the wheeled carrier.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This non-provisional application claims benefit and priority under 35U.S.C. §119(e) of U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No.61/657,884, filed on Jun. 10, 2012 and titled “WHEELED CARRIER ANDSTRAP,” the contents of which are incorporated by reference for allpurposes.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The field of the invention generally is that of wheeled carriers forarticles and straps for carriers.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

People want carriers that enable them to transport articles withoutexcessive effort. Pieces of rolling luggage commonly have wheeledreceivers with an interior compartment for containing articles. Thewheels support the weight of the luggage and its contents. The userpulls a handle attached to the receiver in order to move the piece ofrolling luggage while the wheels support its weight. The handle usuallyis part of a telescoping handle assembly that can be retracted into thereceiver. An opening on one side or other of the receiver providesaccess to the interior compartment. The opening is closed by a door orpanel, usually by a zipper but sometimes buckles by or clasps.

The receivers of existing pieces of rolling luggage lack adequate accessto the interior compartment. In addition, the interior compartmentshould be as large as possible in order to accommodate large articleswhen the size of the receiver is limited, such as by the need to satisfycarry-on luggage size requirements.

A person often will travel with two carriers, bags, or pieces ofluggage, at least one of them being a piece of rolling luggage. In thatcase the person will want to be able to use the at least one piece ofrolling luggage to carry the other carrier, bag or piece of luggage sothe user may pull both pieces by one handle. Various expedients havebeen used to attach a bag, carrier, or piece of luggage to the piece ofrolling luggage, such as using elastic cord or by wrapping a shoulderstrap around the handle of the piece of rolling luggage, but theattachments are often insecure or require additional equipment that hasno other purpose.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the invention, the problem of providing more access to thesame interior compartment is solved by providing a carrier that has areceiver with wheels and a handle in which the receiver has both a topand a side opening in order to provide access to an interior compartmentin the receiver. Such a carrier will allow the user to obtain access tothe interior compartment through the top opening to reach articles thatare needed immediately without the user having to put the receiver onits side. Alternatively, the user can reach articles stored in theinterior compartment through the side opening. In a further aspect ofthe invention, the handle assembly is attached to an exterior wall ofthe receiver and therefore is not contained inside the receiver.

The problem of providing a more secure attachment of a carrier, bag, orpiece of luggage to a piece of rolling luggage having a handle is solvedby providing a strap for connection to the carrier, bag, or piece ofluggage and having an opening between its point of connection to thecarrier, bag, or piece of luggage through which the handle of the pieceof rolling luggage is inserted. In an aspect of the invention, the strapis a shoulder strap that is bifurcated in at least a part of theshoulder strap to form an opening to receive the handle of the piece ofrolling luggage in order to attach the carrier, bag, or piece of luggageto the piece of rolling luggage.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention willbecome more fully apparent from the following detailed description ofpreferred embodiments, the appended claims, and the accompanyingdrawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view from the right and front side of anembodiment of a wheeled carrier according to the invention with the topand front doors or panels zipped to the receiver of the carrier and thehandle assembly is retracted to a closed configuration.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view from the right and front side of theembodiment of a wheeled carrier shown in FIG. 1 wherein the handleassembly is deployed in an extended configuration and the top and frontdoors or panels are unzipped from the receiver or body of the carrierand rotated away from the top and front openings to the interiorcompartment formed in the receiver of the carrier;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view from the rear and right side of theembodiment of a carrier shown in FIG. 1 with the handle assemblydeployed in the extended configuration and the top door or panelunzipped and rotated away from the top opening to the compartment of thereceiver of the carrier;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view from the right and front side of theembodiment of the carrier shown in FIG. 1 supported on another wheeledcarrier by its shoulder strap engaging the handle of the other rollingluggage.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring now to the drawings, a preferred embodiment of a wheeledcarrier according to the invention is indicated generally by referencenumeral 1. The wheeled carrier shown in the drawings is in the form of apilot's bag, also known as a flight bag or aviator bag, and is providedwith wheels and a telescoping or slidingly extending handle assembly.The size and shape of the wheeled carrier, however, could be varied andstill be within the scope of the invention.

The piece of rolling luggage 1 comprises three components: a receiver10, a handle assembly 100, and a shoulder strap 200, as described inmore detail below.

The receiver 10 has a front wall 20, a back wall 30, a right side wall40, a left side wall 50, a top wall 60, and a bottom wall 70 generallyjoined at their edges to define a generally rectangularparallelepiped-shaped interior compartment 12. The front wall 20, theback wall 30, the right side all 40, and the left side wall 50 maygenerally be referred to as the “side walls” of the receiver 10 becausethey join the top wall 60 to the bottom wall 70. The back wall 30 is thewall that is adjacent to the handle assembly 100 and preferably isattached to the handle assembly 100. The front wall 20 is the wallspaced from and parallel to the back wall 30.

The walls 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, and 70 are preferably made of a strong andabrasion resistant fabric, such as polyester oxford cloth, coated on aninterior side for water resistance, and further provided with padding orsimilar stiffening elements in order to give shape to the receiver 10.Padding would provide some protection to the contents of the receiver 10from dropping and other blows.

The receiver 10 is provided with two wheel assemblies 80. Each wheelassembly 80 comprises a wheel 82 mounted on an axle attached to a wheelhousing 84. The wheel assemblies 80 are each attached to the exterior ofthe bottom wall 70, the back wall 30, and one of the right side wall 40and the left side wall 50 so that the wheels 82 generally share a commonaxis. The wheel housings 84 each comprise an interior portion and anexterior portion mounted on either side of the bottom wall 70, the backwall 30, and one of the right side wall 40 and the left side wall 50.

The wheels 82 and the foot 90 will support the receiver 10 in an uprightposition as shown in FIGS. 1-3.

The interior portions of the wheel housings 84 also are mounted over asheet (not shown) that is positioned against the interior of the backwall 30 and the bottom wall 70. The sheet is preferably made ofpolyethylene and provides rigidity and shape to the receiver 10. Asdiscussed below, it will connect to the handle assembly 100.

Rivets and/or screws join the interior and exterior portions of thewheel housings 84 through the bottom wall 70, the back wall 30, thepolyethylene sheet, and one of the right side wall 40 and the left sidewall 50. Rivets or screws also join the foot 90 through the bottom wall70 to the polyethylene sheet.

The receiver 10 has two openings 21 and 61 that each permit access tothe same interior compartment 12, as is shown in FIG. 2. A front opening21 accesses the compartment 12 through the front wall 20. A front dooror panel 22 closes the front opening 21 when the zipper halves 23 a and23 b of the zipper 23 are joined by moving the zipper sliders 23 c. Thefront door 22 is attached to the bottom wall 70 by a hinge 22 a so thatthe front door 22 may rotate away and down from the front wall 20 toexpose the opening 21. The retainer straps 24 hold the door 22 partlyopen but may be disconnected from the door 22 by unfastening the buckles26.

A top opening 61 accesses the compartment 12 through the top wall 60. Atop door 62 closes the top opening 61 when the zipper halves 63 a and 63b of the zipper 63 are joined by moving the zipper sliders 63 c. The topdoor 62 is attached to the back wall 30 by a hinge 62 a so that the topdoor 62 may rotate away and down from the top wall 60 to expose theopening 61. As shown in FIG. 2, the top door 62 essentially is the sameas the top wall 60 but this is not required.

As an example of the usefulness of having top and side openings in thesame wheeled carrier, consider the benefit to a photographer of beingable to reach into the top opening 61 of the wheeled carrier 1 whilethat wheeled carrier 1 is positioned upright as shown in FIGS. 1-3. Thephotographer may have a camera stored in an upper part of thecompartment 12, just below the top door 62, where she can easily reachit if needed to take a picture quickly. Alternatively, gear may bestored in a lower part of the compartment 12 that does not need to beavailable so quickly. The photographer then will have the time to turnthe receiver 10 so that its front wall 20 is uppermost and thus gainaccess to the front door 22 and the front opening 21 without the worryof articles falling out of the interior compartment 12.

A padded tub insert 14 preferably is provided to give more protection tothe contents of the compartment from shocks and jostling. It is sizedand shaped to fit against the back wall 30, the bottom wall 70, and theright and left side walls 40 and 50 b. Openings are defined in thepadded tub insert 14 that align with and correspond to the openings 21and 61 defined in the receiver 10.

The padded tub insert 14 preferably is made of foam padding contained ina fabric envelope. The fabric envelope preferably is made of a knittedfabric, at least on the side that faces the interior of the compartment12, in order to permit the attachment of the optional movable dividers16 by means of hook strips attached to the ends and sides of thedividers 16. Providing the dividers 16 is useful, for example, toposition and contain articles useful for photographers within theinterior compartment 12.

The padded tub insert 14 is removable and therefore may be replaced. Itis connected to the side walls 40 and 50 and the bottom wall 70 by hookand loop strips (not shown) and is fastened to the right and left sidewalls 40 and 50 b and the back wall 30 by a zipper (not shown) runningunder the edge of the opening 61.

A removable padded tub insert for a wheeled luggage is described in thepresent inventors' U.S. Pat. No. 8,123,007, the disclosure of which isincorporated by reference for all purposes permitted by law andregulation, at column 8, line 65 to column 9, line 37. The padded tubinsert 14 used in the receiver 10 of the wheeled carrier 1 of thisspecification, however, does not separate the interior compartment 12into two subcompartments.

The receiver 10 contains a handle assembly 100. It comprises twotelescoping arms 110 joined by a handle 120. The telescoping arms 110comprise three tubes with rectangular cross-sections of varying sizethat permit the larger to overlap the smaller to allow the tubes toslide back and forth with respect to each other. The handle 120 has abutton that the user may depress to unlock the telescoping arms 110 inorder to collapse them from the extended configuration shown in FIGS. 2and 3, in which the arms 110 extend above the top wall 60, to thecontracted configuration shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, in which the arms 110do not extend above the top wall 60.

The telescoping arms 110 also are held together by the cross bars 130,one of which is shown in FIG. 3. The cross arms 130 are connected to theouter side of the back wall 30 by rivets or bolts that join the crossarms 130, the back wall 30, and the frame sheet on the other side of theback wall 30.

Being placed on the outer side of the back wall 30 rather than the innerside permits fuller use of the compartment 12 for storing various itemsbecause the handle assembly 100 will not be inside the receiver 10. Thehandle assembly 100 also is exposed on the exterior of the receiver 10where it is liable to wear and damage. A shield 140 is provided in theform of a molded sheet, preferably made of acrylonitrile butadienestyrene (ABS). The shield 140 is adhered or sewn to the back wall 30.Preferably, the shield 140 will cover and protect the handle assembly100 when it is in the contracted configuration shown in FIGS. 1 and 4.

The rolling luggage 1 is provided with a shoulder strap 200 (shown inFIGS. 1, 2, and 4) that permits it to be suspended from the shoulder ofthe user. For that purpose it comprises a central section 210 that ispadded for comfort. The central portion comprises two portions 210 a and210 b that are sewn to each other only at their respective ends so thatthe portions 210 a and 210 b may be separated from each other at thepoints where they are not attached. As shown in FIG. 4 and described inmore detail below, an object may be inserted between the portions 210 aand 210 b. The portion 210 b is more thickly padded and should be theportion that comes in direct contact with the shoulder of the user. Theportion 210 a need not be padded as much as the portion 210 b or at all.

The central section 210 is attached by sewn loops to the ladder lockbuckles 212. The ladder lock buckles 212 receive the straps 214, whichare preferably made of webbing, and are fitted through two apertures inthe corresponding ladder lock buckle 212. One end of each strap 214 isattached to a snap hook 216 by folding a portion around the ring of thesnap hook 216 and sewing the end of that portion to the strap. The snaphooks 216 connect the shoulder strap 200 to the receiver 10 by beingattached to the D rings 42 and 52 on straps sewn on the right and leftside walls 40 and 50, respectively. The shoulder strap 200 may bedetached from the receiver 10 by opening the snap hooks 216 in order todisconnect them from the D-rings 42 and 52.

The length of portion of each of the straps 214 may be adjusted bysliding the strap 214 through the ladder lock buckle 212 to the degreedesired by the user. A keeper ring 218 secures the loose end of thestrap 214. The keeper ring 218 is made of a piece of an elastic fabricand is sewn to itself. It fits around the strap 214 and is free to movealong the strap 214 as desired by the user.

A traveler often will have more than one carrier to transport. If one ofthe pieces is a wheeled carrier, it may be used to support the othercarrier so that the traveler can tow both pieces at once with one hand.

FIG. 4 shows how the shoulder strap 200 may be used to connect thewheeled carrier 1 to another wheeled carrier, designated as “R” in FIG.4. The user may connect the shoulder strap 200 to the handle “H” of thewheeled carrier R by sliding the handle H between the portions 210 a and210 b. The length of the straps 214 between the slider buckles 212 andthe snap rings 216 may need to be adjusted to have the wheeled carrier 1fit next to the front wall “F” of the rolling luggage R or on the topwall “T” of the rolling luggage R (not shown). The shoulder strap 200permits an easy and secure attachment of the wheeled carrier 1 to thewheeled carrier R and will replace a variety of expedients currentlyused for attaching one carrier to another.

While the invention has been described in conjunction with the preferredembodiment, it will be understood that it is not intended to limit theinvention to this embodiment or its particular manner of construction,materials or components. On the contrary, the invention is intended tocover alternatives, modifications and equivalents that may be includedwithin the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appendedclaims.

1. A carrier that has a receiver provided with wheels and a handleassembly in which the receiver has both a top and a side opening definedin the receiver in order to provide access to an interior compartmentdefined in the receiver.
 2. The carrier according to claim 1, whereinthe receiver comprises walls that define an interior compartment, andthe walls including a side wall and a top wall, the top opening beingdefined in the top wall and the side opening being defined in the sidewall, and the top and the side openings both providing access to theinterior compartment.
 3. The carrier according to claim 2 wherein a topdoor and a side door are provided for closing the top opening and theside opening, respectively.
 4. A wheeled carrier, comprising: a receiverhaving a front wall, a back wall, two side walls, a top wall, and abottom wall, the front wall and the back wall facing each other andbeing joined to the bottom wall, the side walls, and the top wall so asto define an internal compartment; a slidably extending handle assemblyattached to the back wall, the slidably extending handle assembly havinga first configuration that is contracted and a second configuration thatextends above the top wall; two wheel housings each having a wheel, thewheel housings being attached to the receiver adjacent the bottom wall;a side opening defined in one of the front or side walls for providingentry to the internal compartment from the exterior of the carrier, theside opening being provided with a side door hinged to the receiver forsecuring the side opening; and a top opening defined in the top wall ofthe receiver providing entry to the internal compartment from theexterior of the receiver, the top opening being provided with a top doorhinged to the receiver for securing the top opening, the top door beingsubstantially coextensive with the top wall.
 5. The wheeled carrieraccording to claim 4 wherein the handle assembly is attached to theoutside of the back wall.
 6. The wheeled carrier according to claim 5further comprising a shield attached to the back wall and disposed tocover and protect at least part of the handle assembly.
 7. The wheeledcarrier according to claim 4 further comprising an insert comprisingpadding and adapted to be contained inside the internal compartment andadjacent the side walls, the back wall, and the bottom wall.
 8. Thewheeled carrier according to claim 4 wherein the wheels are locatedadjacent the bottom wall and extend away from the receiver whereby thewheels can support a substantial part of the weight of the piece ofluggage when the receiver is substantially above the wheels and thewheels are in contact with a surface whereby a user can grasp the handleassembly when in the second configuration and pull or push the receiverof the piece of luggage across the surface in an inclined position. 9.The wheeled carrier according to claim 4 wherein a first zipper havingcomplementary halves is attached on either side of the side opening, thehalves of the first zipper having at least one slider for reversiblyseparating the halves of the first zipper whereby the side door isopened and the side opening permits entry from the exterior of thereceiver, and attaching the halves of the first zipper, whereby the sidedoor is closed and the side opening is secured from entry from theexterior of the carrier.
 10. The wheeled carrier according to claim 4wherein a second zipper having complementary halves is attached oneither side of the top opening, the halves of the second zipper havingat least one slider for reversibly separating the halves of the secondzipper whereby the top door is opened and the top opening permits entryfrom the exterior of the receiver, and attaching the halves of thesecond zipper, whereby the top door is closed and the top opening issecured from entry from the exterior of the carrier.
 11. The wheeledcarrier according to claim 4 further comprising a strap adapted forattaching the carrier to another wheeled carrier having a handle,comprising a strap having ends attached to the receiver, the strapdefining an opening in at least a portion of the strap between the endsof the strap, wherein the opening is adapted to receive the handle ofthe other wheeled carrier.
 12. The wheeled carrier according to claim 11wherein the ends of the strap comprise snap rings and the receiver has aring mounted on each of at least two walls adapted for attachment to thesnap rings.
 13. (canceled)
 14. A strap adapted for attaching a carrierto a wheeled carrier, comprising a strap having ends capable of beingattached to the carrier, the strap having an opening in at least aportion of the strap between the ends of the strap, wherein the openingis adapted to receive the handle of the wheeled carrier.
 15. The strapaccording to claim 14 wherein the portion of the strap between the endsof the strap comprises padding for the comfort of a bearer wearing thecarrier.
 17. The strap according to claim 14 wherein the strap comprisesa snap ring mounted at each of its ends.
 18. (canceled)